Working TogetherMy clinical practice pivots around the central idea that health is a process, a dedication, and path of discovery. Together we explore what contributes to dis-ease, with the intention to not only resolve manifest symptoms but to address any underlying imbalance. From a holistic perspective this means looking at lifestyle choices, relationships, the surrounding environment, foods we eat, and how we relate to thoughts and feelings, all of which intertwine to affect our wellbeing. An initial consultation session allows me to collect information through both conversation and diagnostic techniques. A recommended plan emerges that includes a combination of Acupuncture, Herbal Medicine, Tai Chi Chuan and Qigong exercises (and classes), meditation, guidance with diet, and bodywork to above all cultivate participation in your own health. In this way we allow "medicine" to ultimately be preventative care and that which awakens us fully to life.

Acupuncture, one of the modalities of Chinese Medicine with a history of over 2,000 years, is a profound inheritance into our culture for it is an opportunity to imagine a different way of perceiving the body and to believe in what we cannot see: streams of "Qi" traversing the body with special points along these pathways that when activated adjust and regulate flow and circulation. Receiving acupuncture not only alleviates symptoms but is an experience of connection - feeling how a subtle sensation from a needle in one area sends a message to the whole body. And then from a greater perspective, we can imagine how healthy changes within ourselves - small ecosystems within the larger ecology of the earth - affects the balance and wellbeing of all around us. I practice with a particular focus on the Five Elements or Five Phase Theory in Chinese Medicine: the dymamic relationship among wood, fire, earth, metal and water. This model, filled with rich imagery and metaphor, illustrates how our physiology relates to the natural environment, and teaches how to live from the center of the circle of constantly changing patterns of thoughts and emotions so we may respond to life with spontaneity and virtue. Though acupuncture has become increasingly familiar, there are many bridges of understanding yet to be built. Towards this end, I welcome collaboration with physicians and other specialists.

Chinese herbal therapy is one of the pillars of Chinese Medicine and offers an important way to understand "medicine". Whereas Western drugs often control symptoms, they do not alter the disease process (antibiotics eliminate bacteria but do not improve a person's resistance to infection; diuretics rid excess fluid without enriching kidney function). Chinese herbs treat the underlying condition and have a balancing or regulating effect on the body, and rarely cause unwanted side effects. Different parts of plants such as the leaves, roots, stems, flowers, and seeds are used based on their action in the body. They are usually combined into formulas and can be taken as teas, capsules, tinctures, or powders. Chinese herbs along with dietary changes are exceptional for both acute ailments and chronic imbalances such as allergies, gynecological disorders, respiratory problems, and pain syndromes. I am always pleased to converse with medical doctors regarding the use of herbal therapy alongside of or in lieu of pharmaceuticals.